WA Library Technicians Group Report

Well a fair bit to report as we missed the deadline for last month's newsletter!

First and foremost, congratulations to Judy Allan for her certificate of recognition awarded at the Sharr Medal presentation on the 6th of March. Judy was in distinguished company, with Pam Hartree and Kim Grace: Kim was the Medal recipient. The Sharr medal is awarded to an outstanding library studies graduate. The certificate of recognition is recognition of a graduate's potential to contribute positively to the library industry so well done Judy!

Secondly, a big thank you to Carol Newton-Smith and Georgiana Ananda for hosting our March meeting at the UWA Medical and Dental Library. Prior to the meeting Georgiana gave us a tour of the new library and told us a little about its operation. The library is situated near the Oral Health Centre of WA and is attractively set out. Some interesting points were that internet ports were made available throughout the library for students to use with their own laptops, and that some of the journal databases were available for the public to use. Although the library is primarily for the students and staff of UWA it also supports the general public, who, although they cannot borrow, are welcome to use the resources on site. The library makes good use of the available floor space to support both quiet and group study and lockers are provided for students to use.

Another activity over the past month or so has been a visit to Bunbury by the South West Forum Working Group to meet with our colleagues and gather some useful information regarding venues, speakers, etc. The South West Forum is a co-operative venture with input from ALIA West, ourselves and South West Library Link. It aims to be a showcase for the diversity of skills and interests of the library industry here in WA. We have a great program of events planned and will be sending out more information and registration forms in the next month so stay tuned! To register for an information pack, please contact Brenda Ellen.

We also ran a Job Applications and Interview Skills workshop on Saturday 13th April which was well attended. The participants were very generous to each other: sharing tips and tricks for job hunting and interview skills, and some good contacts were formed. Very good to see!

Upcoming activities include a visit to Curtin University's Murray Street Library which supports the Graduate School of Business, and the National Library Technicians Day Breakfast, which this year will be held at the Boatshed Café, Coode Street, South Perth, starting at 7:30am on Tuesday 21st May. RSVPS to Brenda asap please, as we need to book the table(s).

Don't forget also that the AGM is just around the corner! We plan on a short meeting and then dinner at Hans Noodle House in Northbridge. Some committee positions are open for election, so please contact Brenda or myself if you are interested in coming on the committee.

Have a great month, and I hope to see you all at one or other of our upcoming events!

Cheers
Bonnie Rae

Bonnie Rae Bruce
Convenor, WA Library Technicians Group

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